Section 113: No Change In MassHealth Behavioral Health Until Report Completed

Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary, the executive office of health and human services shall not make any change to the financing, operation or regulation of, or contracts pertaining to, the provision of behavioral health services to persons receiving services administered, provided, paid for or procured by the executive office of health and human services, office of Medicaid, including, but not limited to services under Title XIX of the Social Security Act, and Title XXI SCHIP, and any MassHealth expansion population served under Section 1115 waivers, nor shall it recommend or procure, by request for response or otherwise, any such changes, nor shall it seek approval from the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services for any such changes, until it has submitted a report outlining the proposed changes, together with its reasons and an explanation of the benefits of such changes, to the joint committees on mental health and substance abuse and health care financing; and further, all managed care organizations contracting or delivering behavioral health services to persons receiving services administered, provided, paid for or procured by the executive office of health and human services, office of Medicaid, including, but not limited to services under Title XIX of the Social Security Act, and Title XXI SCHIP, and any MassHealth expansion population served under Section 1115 waivers, and youth in the care and custody of the department of social services or the department of youth services, including any specialty behavioral health managed care organization contracted to administer said behavioral health services, shall obtain the approval of the commissioner of mental health for all of the behavioral health benefits, including but not limited to policies, protocols, standards, contract specifications, utilization review and utilization management criteria and outcome measurements. For purposes of this section, "specialty behavioral health managed care organization" shall mean a managed care organization whose primary line of business is the management of mental health and substance abuse services.